Floating wooden dry-dock



1. L. BHYNL FLOATING WOODEN DRY DOCK. I V l APPLICATION FILED AUG.I5,199. 1,336,941

RENEWED MAR. 11,1920.

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I. I.. BRYNE.

FLOATING WOODEN DRY DOCK.,

APPLICATION FILED AuG.I5,1919. RENEwED MAR. 11, 1920.

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FLOATING WOODEN DRY DOCK. APPLICATION FILED Aue. I5, 1919r IIEIIEv/ED IIAII. II, I92o.

1.335,941 Patened Ap. 139 19%..

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JAMES I. BRYNE, OF BOSTON, IMASSACHUSETTS.

FLOATING WOODEN DRY-DQCK.

Application filed August 15, 1919, Serial No. 317,824. Renewed March 11, 1920.

To all whom. t may concern.'

lie it known that I, JAMES L. BKYNE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of lfassaehusetts. have invented a new and useful Floating IVe/den Dry-Bock, of which the following is a specification.

My invention is a new and useful improvement in floating wooden drydock of the usual t5 type. The object of my invention is .to provide a floating wooden drydock which shall be simpler, stronger, lighter', more dura le, less costly and capable 'of being built in a shorter time than the prior state of the art permits.

I attain this object by improving the form of the transverse trusses and certain parts thereof; by improving the methods of fabricating, placing and securing saidtrusses in the drydock structure; and by improving the form of the longitudinal center bulkhead or keel girder.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating my invention- Figure 1 is a vertical section through a portion of a drydock Constructed in accordance with my invention;

Fig. 2 is a section approximately on the line 2*-2 of Fig. f1;

Fig. 3 is a vertical section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a detail top (or bottom) plan of the center bulkhead;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged vertical section of the center bulkhead on line 5-5 of Fig. el.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged detail view, partly in section and partly in elevation. of the saddle member 8;

Fig. 7 is a top plan of the saddle member and adjacent parts; and

Fig. 8 is a detail elevation of same.

Like numerals designate like parts in each of the views.

Referring' to the accompanying drawings, I provide trusses 1, as indicated in Figs. 1-4, transverse of the drydock and at proper intervals. I provide a bottom chord composed of two timbers 2 and 2a; and a top chord composed of two timbers 3 and 3a, diagonals 4, counter-diagonals 5, suitably fastened together, and adjustable tension members 6, consisting of rods 7 and a suitable adjustable waterproof sleeve nut 9. such as illustrated in my co-pending application, Serial N 0.316,786.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 13, 192,0.

Serial No. 365,092.

I have introduced auxiliary timbers 2a in the lower and auxiliary timbers 3a in the upper chord members, respectively, for the purpose of strengthening them at the points where the strain on them is the greatest. This improvement obviates the necessity of using a. single large timber throughout the entire length of the truss, thereby resulting in a saving of weight and a saving in the cost of construction.

Referring to Figs. 6, 7 and 8, I provide metal saddles 8, having recess portions 11 and slots 10, in which are inserted the heads of tension rods 7, as shown in Figs. 6, 7 and 8. Tension rods 7 can thus be readily replaced and removed; and by providing the waterproof sleeve nut or turnbuckle 9, which protects the threads of the rods from corrosion, while permitting of their adjustment to provide the desired tension, a substantial improvement is obtained over the ordinary type of turnbuckle used in connection with tension rods in drydocks.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 3, I provide filler pieces 15 firmly bolted or spiked to the struc` ture between the trusses and parts thereof; thus securing the trusses rigidly to the remainder of the structure without the use of dovetailing, and thereby reducing the cost of construction.

Referring to Fig. 1. I provide a center bulkhead or keel girder 16, which is designed to perform two functions, namely to provide longitudinal stiffness in the drydock and to be watertight. Girder 16 is provided with top and bottom flanges 17, of like construction, composed of longitudinal timbers bolted together by suitable transverse bolts 22. I provide a wedge-shaped timber 14 as the central member of the series of timbers designated as 17. Flanges 17 are notched over the chord members of the trusses 2 and 3, by which means said chord members within the limits of the girder become a part thereof, transmitting stresses directly between the flanges 17 and the web 18.

As illustrated in Fig. 2, web 18 is composed of reversely disposed diagonal planks 19 and 19, forming the center of the web, and horizontal planks 2O on either side thereof. The fianges 17 and web 18 I securely unite by adjustable tension rods 21, of appropriate size, passing through and between the top and bottom flanges 17, as shown in F gs. 2 and 5. The wedge-shaped center timber lat in conjunction with the transverse bolts 22 secure the proper action of the tension rods 21.v

The most important feature of my inven tion is that the trusses are so designed as to be capable of being constructed as a unit outside the drydock structure and placed therein at a convenient stage in the progress of the construction. rIhe construction described is comparatively simple and does not require the use of an arched member to resist counter stresses.

I am aware that trusses in some degree similar to mine have been used previously in floating drydocks; and that certain forms of tension members have been used to bind the members of the truss together, and do notclaim these broadly as new, but only theV improvements specically set forth in the following claims:

l. In a floating wooden drydock, a center bulkhead or keel girder composed lof a web built up of diagonal and horizontal planking, a top iange composed of a series of horizontal timbers bolted together, a bottom flange composed of horizontal timbers bolted together, the central timbers of each of the aforesaid series being Wedgeshaped, and tension rods passing through and between the top and bottom flanges, and vsecuring the structure rigidly together as a unit. -'2. In a floating Wooden drydock,` a center bulkhead or keel girder, comprising a web, top and bottom flanges consisting of a series of timbers suitably bolted together, said timbers having slots, wherein the top and bottom chords forming the transverse trusses of the drydock structure are adapted to be fitted, substantially as and for the purposes described.

JAMES L. BRYNE. Y 

